Table 1.
Demographic characteristics in healthy Chinese controls and Chinese patients with non-transfusion-dependent thalassemia (NTDT) or thalassemia major (TM)
| Parameters | NTDTa (n = 105) | TM (n = 139) | Controls (n = 120) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years), median (range) | 24.0 (10–63) | 8.0 (3–49) | 21.5 (5–61) |
| Male, n (%) | 61 (58.1) | 81 (58.3) | 71 (59.2) |
| Age group (years), n (%) | |||
| <11 | 5 (4.8) | 93 (66.9) | 8 (6.7) |
| 11–20 | 39 (37.1) | 43 (31.0) | 38 (31.7) |
| 20–30 | 33 (31.4) | 2 (1.4) | 43 (35.8) |
| >30 | 28 (26.7) | 1 (0.7) | 31 (25.8) |
| Hepatomegaly, n (%) | 31 (29.5) | 42 (30.2) | – |
| Splenomegaly, n (%) | 34 (32.4) | 32 (23.0) | – |
| Splenectomized, n (%) | 47 (44.8) | 26 (18.7) | – |
| Chelation therapy, n (%) | – | ||
| DFO | 9 (8.6) | 36 (25.9) | – |
| DFP | 8 (7.6) | 24 (17.3) | – |
| DFO + DFP/DFX | 7 (6.7) | 77 (55.4) | – |
| None | 81 (77.1) | 2 (1.4) | – |
| Transfusion volume (U), median (IQR) | 1.5 (0.0–27.5) | 89.0 (12.0–456.0) | – |
| Serum ferritin (ng/ml), median (range) | 1085 (36–19704) | 4519 (121–14724) | – |
| Serum ferritin category (ng/ml), n (%) | – | ||
| <1000 | 50 (47.6) | 9 (6.5) | – |
| 1000–2500 | 41 (39.0) | 24 (17.3) | – |
| >2500 | 14 (13.4) | 106 (76.2) | – |
a
Of 105 patients with NTDT, 62 were diagnosed with hemoglobin H (HbH) disease, 13 with hemoglobin E (HbE)/β-thalassemia and 30 with β thalassemia intermedia. DFO: deferoxamine; DFP: deferiprone; DFX: deferasirox; IQR: interquartile range.